Iranians in city rally to aid Ghelichi

Accused Morarji in magistrate custody, lawyer seeks removal of IPC section 370 from his FIR; the victim had applied for a visa extension

Within days of the dramatic rescue of an Iranian woman from the home of an industrialist’s son in Koregaon Park, her fellow nationals in the city have come forward to extend a helping hand to her. Now, the Iranian Student Association has rallied to help Parvin Ghelichi (30) — who has alleged that she was locked up and tortured by boyfriend Dhanraj Morarji (47) — and approached senior police officials along with her.

Meanwhile, Morarji was produced before the court on Wednesday, after which he has been sent to Yerwada Central Prison. During this hearing, his lawyer also sought the removal of Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 370 (buying or disposing of any person as a slave) from the first information report (FIR), but the court rejected this request.

Following the criminal case filed against Morarji — after Ghelichi’s was freed by police on Monday —Koregaon Police on Wednesday also conducted a long search at his house in an upscale society off North Main Road. Later, they claimed they did not find anything suspicious on the premises.

(L-R) Morarji at court on Wednesday; Fakhrabadi of the Iranian Student Association which is helping Ghelichi out; PIC: MAHENDRA KOLHE

Farzad Fakhrabadi, president of the Association supporting Ghelichi, accompanied her while meeting deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Bachchan Singh on the same day, at which time the woman narrated the details of her ordeal to the cop. She claimed she was staying with Morarji after he promised to marry her, while alleging that he forced her to consume alcohol and drugs, as also beat and threatened her to kill her. In the course of these events, Ghelichi’s said her visa had expired, and she had put in a request for an extension. But Morarji had hidden her documents and would not allow her to leave the home. She also alleged that he would lock her in and leave dogs, who she claimed were ferocious, unchained in the hall.

Farzad told Mirror, “We have sent a letter to the Iranian consulate here and informed them about the entire incident. The girl has complained that she was wrongfully detained in the house and beaten up by Morarji. She is traumatised due to what happened and still in fear of the man. We have been supporting her all the way and co-ordinating with the consulate.”

When Morarji was produced in court, defence lawyer Abhijeet Bidkar demanded magisterial custody for him and also submitted an application seeking the removal of IPC section 370 from the charges on Morarji. Bidkar claimed, “This section was added after an FIR was registered. Also, the complainant and the accused are friends and had very good relations, so this section is not relevant in the case. Considering all these facts, it should be removed.”

Opposing this, the public prosecutor submitted that while the sessions court can try this section, the court of judicial magistrate (first class) has no jurisdiction to entertain the application.

Investigating officer Ganesh Mane also submitted his reply and opposed the application seeking the removal, saying, “The FIR was registered as per the woman’s complaint. She was beaten up by the accused and wrongfully confined. The probe is at a primary stage. A detailed investigation into the physical and mental harassment is required, so the court should reject the application at this time.”

Considering the argument, the court rejected the application and granted magistrate custody to Morarji. The defence lawyer also moved a bail application in the sessions court, which will be heard on January 7.

When Mirror contacted DCP Singh, he said, “The woman said she befriended Morarji through a common friend. She complained that he forced her to drink alcohol. We found some contradictions in the narration, but we have been recording the statements of both parties. We are probing the case transparently with the help of closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, call records and documents. Her visa has expired and she has applied for an extension.”

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